About the Project

The Mathematics News Snapshots for High School (MNS) project aims to provide high school students with a glimpse into the exciting and dynamic world of contemporary mathematics. The project was founded in order to decrease the gap between the ever-growing nature of mathematics and the stagnated nature of school curricula.

Our main tool is the Snapshots – PowerPoint presentations for the mathematics teachers. Each Snapshot is focused on a result published in recent decades in the mathematics literature, and tells a compelling story about the discovery – including its history, notable mathematicians who tackled it, and its general significance (e.g., modern applications).

The Snapshots are designed and written by teams of experts in mathematics and mathematics education, directed by Prof. Nitsa Movshovitz-Hadar. The teams take into account certain limitations, such as students’ (inadequate) academic background and the curricular strains with which teachers must cope. Once a year all Snapshots are updated to reflect new relevant results, and are revised based on feedback from participating teachers. They have been field-tested in several empirical studies.

Each Snapshot provides teachers a fully detailed basis for a 25-30 minute “performance”, which high school students of any level (basic, intermediate, or advanced) are invited to listen to and enjoy – much like a performing art show, a sports competition or a theater play. For some Snapshots we offer complementary activities – either as an introduction to the topic or as a follow-up, altogether taking no more than one class period.

We recommend interweaving Snapshots into the ordinary teaching on a regular basis, once every 3-4 weeks. Teachers participating in our project further recommend to inform the students at the beginning of the school year that “Snapshots will be presented on the first [day of the week] of every month”, and incorporate bonus questions in exams regarding the contents of the Snapshots.

To receive any of the MNSs for classroom implementation in a stand-alone PowerPoint version that includes comments to the teacher under many of the slides, and suggestions for augmenting activities, please use “contact us” and send details about the school, the class level, the teacher’s name and the title of the requested MNS.